Market Buzz

Master Nursery Garden Centers, PLNA to bring events together this summer
Master Nursery Garden Centers and the Pennsylvania Landscape & Nursery Association (PLNA) will bring their major member events together this summer. The Master Nursery’s Conclave and PANTS show will be held July 30-Aug. 2 in the Greater Philadelphia area. “Scheduling our Conclave jointly with PANTS will make it easier for our members to participate in both of these important events,” said Bill Jameson, CEO of Master Nursery Garden Centers. “When we took a look at partnering with PLNA, it just seemed so logical. Our members will have a private day of education and networking on July 30th, and then attend PANTS the following three days. We are confident that combining our efforts to promote one event will increase attendance at PANTS and benefit PLNA, the vendors and attendees.”

All-America Selections introduces new website
All-America Selections, a non-profit organization known for trialing and promoting flowers and vegetables, has reconfigured its website with a fresh, modern design to launch the celebration of the organization’s 80th anniversary this year. Especially valuable to garden centers, extension agents, public gardens and others are the downloadable and printable signs, brochures and presentations found in the “Signs and Brochures” section. These tools are there for anyone interested in explaining the AAS Trialing process and/or promoting the AAS Winners to their customers. See the site for yourself at www.all-americaselections.org.
 

Want to know more?
Learn more about AAS by visiting www.all-americaselections.org.

National Wildlife Federation and ScottsMiracle-Gro create...and end partnership
Last month, The National Wildlife Federation (NWF) and ScottsMiracle-Gro announced a new partnership to advance NWF’s nationwide Be Out There (http://bit.ly/beoutthere) initiative to connect children with nature. And just days after the announcement, the partnership abruptly ended. Garden and environmental activists used social media to decry the partnership and voice their objections to the pairing. Then word came that SMG plead guilty to charges in federal court and will pay $4.5 million in fines for selling pesticide-coated birdseed. Court documents said that, from November 2005 to March 2008, Scotts distributed 73 million units of birdseed coated with insecticides called Storcide II and Actellic 5E. This was done to keep insects from eating the seeds during storage.

Sunset Magazine and PDSI to introduce Sunset Western Garden Collection
The first live plant collection to focus exclusively on top performing plants for the Western gardener—the Sunset Western Garden Collection—will debut this spring with 23 new introductions, according to Sunset magazine and Plant Development Services Inc. The Sunset Western Garden Collection will hit retail shelves beginning in April 2012 in California. Distribution will expand to the 13 Western states in the Sunset magazine reading area in the coming years. For more information, or to become a wholesale grower or garden center partner, visit www.sunsetwesterngardencollection.com.

OFA announces new joint venture with ANLA
OFA—The Association of Horticulture Professionals and American Nursery & Landscape Association (ANLA) are partnering up. According to a statement released by OFA, the two national organizations are expanding on previous collaborations and forming a joint venture that involves sharing resources, including appropriate staff, to expand the capacity of the organizations to better support members and advocate the horticultural industry’s interests before government and the general public.

“This is not a merger, but in several years, if both organizations see the joint venture as a value to our members and further collaboration will better serve you and the industry, the intention is to form a new, single premier horticulture organization serving North America,”

— OFA president, Michael McCabe of McCabe’s Greenhouse & Floral in Lawrenceburg, Ind., in a letter to members.

Imperial and Willoway Nurseries to carry on Plants That Work brand
Imperial Nurseries, Granby, Conn.; and Willoway Nurseries, Avon, Ohio, have formed a new product marketing partnership under the name Novalis LLC, and have acquired the brand trademarks previously owned by Carolina Nurseries, including the Plants That Work and Plants That Work by Color brand names

“We recognize the importance of branded products in today’s marketplace. The Plants That Work brand will continue to be an important vehicle for us to use when introducing new and exciting products to independent retailers,” said Greg Schaan, president of Imperial Nurseries. Learn more about the brand at www.plantsthatwork.com.

Keep America Beautiful and U.S. Composting Council announce partnership
National nonprofits Keep America Beautiful (KAB) and the U.S. Composting Council (USCC) will join forces on efforts to increase waste reduction through composting education and activities nationwide. Under the agreement, KAB and USCC will share educational resources and seek to identify collaborative opportunities that benefit their constituencies and the general public by promoting awareness of the important role composting plays in waste reduction, improved soil structure, improved water quality and reduced soil erosion. Learn more from KAB at www.kab.org and USCC at www.compostingcouncil.org.

Difference Makers
One has to wonder: Is Richard Weber’s favorite movie “Groundhog Day?”

In 2009, the owner of Springhouse Gardens in Nicholasville, Ky., was honored with a Landscape Design Award by the Perennial Plant Association. Then, in 2010, Weber was again honored with a PPA Landscape Design Award. Do you sense a pattern developing here?

The winning project for 2010 had Weber, also a landscape architect, create a residential design for a client in Lexington. The challenge facing him and his staff: The site was comparable to many suburban residential lots and faced the many of the same constraints. In addition, his client had requested enhanced privacy, year-round color, and an overall fun and casual feel to the garden. Weber studied his charge —then delivered. What set his design apart, were the varied plant selections, the creative solution to site conditions and a focus on plant combinations that provide stellar year-round interest.

“I always dreamed of having a place where I could create beautiful gardens for people to experience the beauty and wonder of plants, and then be able to take home these plants to grow and enjoy in their own gardens,” Weber said. “Springhouse has given me that opportunity.”